A single death
by GSRFAN91
Summary: Set after Warricks death Sara returns back to Grissom and the team, after finding out about Warricks death, can she help Grissom and the team pull through? GSR, i know i have posted this before but i have had it beta'd to make it more enjoyable to read
1. Chapter 1

**A/N this was a little story i was playing around with and thought id post it and see what you all think :) i havent got a clue where am taking this story, i have had a few ideas, but if any of you readers have any, ill very much appreciate them :)**

**I have redone this chapter as CJS-DEPPendent has done a wonderful job as a beta, Thanks :)**

**A single death**

**Chapter 1**

May 25th 2008

_Am I ready to go back? I know Gil and the team need me, but am I truly ready? I still haven't buried all of my ghosts from the past, but this isn't about me its about Gil and the team, I need to go back to say my goodbyes to Warrick… I wish I could have talk to him, seen him one last time before he died,... I can't believe that my whole family won't be there when I return to Vegas…No Warrick…am I ready to do this? Are they ready to see me? …_

Sara placed her journal on the bed she was sat on; she was in the hotel room, which, although it felt nothing like her home in Vegas, she had called 'home' for the past three months.

Over 3 hours ago Grissom called her telling her that Warrick had been murdered. She knew he was on the verge of tears but never let them out, as soon as he told her he needed her, she booked the earliest plane, and began packing, she came across the journal she has kept since leaving Vegas, she thought if Grissom wanted to know what she did, and how she felt, she would sit down with him and read him it.

She stopped packing and wrote all her thoughts about returning to Vegas.

-- -- --

Looking at the clock Sara realised her plane was leaving in 2 hours, stuffing the few items she brought to San Francisco into her bag, she checked the place for anything she missed and headed to the airport.

The plane landed in Vegas, and Sara didn't know whether to phone Grissom and tell him she was there, or surprise him. She didn't even know if he would be home or at the lab.

Deciding to go home and check there first, Sara got in a taxi and headed for the only place she had called home.

While on her way, Sara got out her journal and began to write again.

_May 25th 2008 night_

_Just left the airport to go the only place I have known to be my home, I have no clue whether Gil will be at the lab or at home, but I want to surprise him. When he phoned me I was so scared for him, he sounded so fragile and hurt, all I wanted was to wrap my arms around him and show him how much I love him…_

Sara had arrived at their house after paying the taxi; she grabbed her bag and journal and walked towards the door of her home. She didn't know whether to walk in or knock, she knew Grissom was there, as she saw his Tahoe parked out front. Deciding she should knock, Sara knocked a bit too hard on the door.

When the door opened Sara's heart melted, Grissom was dressed in his checker pj's looking worse for ware. As soon as he saw that it was Sara at the other side of the door he drew her in to a powerful embrace, that's when the tears started to fall from her eyes.

"I missed you" Grissom mumbled into Sara's shoulder.

"I missed you too Gil, Come on, lets go inside" Sara replied noticing their was still stood in the doorway.

Grissom released Sara but took hold of her hand so one part of their bodies where joined.

Taking a seat on the couch Sara waited for Grissom to be seated before moulding her body to his side, and leaning her head on his chest.

"I can't believe it Sara the last time I saw Warrick, we were all at the dinner, we had such a good time…"

"I'm sorry Gil, I knew how much he meant to you, I'm going to miss him too" Sara's tears started to flow freely again, Grissom tightened his arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head.

"The team is distraught, Nick cried, as well as Catherine, Greg showed no emotion when he got told, he just said he had work to do, I'm scared for him, he's usually not like that"

"Since he got attacked, he has become better at hiding his emotion, I'll try to talk with him, and Catherine must be going through hell, I know that she cared for him a lot…"

"Sara, I'm sorry I didn't ask before, how are you?" Grissom asked softly

"I'm okay, but it's not about me, it's about helping you through this, helping us both through this"

"I know honey and thank you for coming back"

"Have you slept, Gil?" Sara asked concerned, noticing the bags under his eyes.

Grissom didn't answer, which Sara took, as a no.

"Come on Gil, go to bed and I'll be there in a second"

"Okay honey…" with that Grissom left Sara to go to the bedroom, while Sara took out her journal and stated writing.

_May 25th night_

_Gil is a mess, he looks like he hasn't slept in a while, and he is so upset, I just don't know how to comfort him, Warrick was like a son to him. I'm trying to hold myself together for him but its harder then I thought it would be, and with all what's happened, Gil still asked if I was okay..._

Placing the book down on the couch, Sara headed for the bedroom, thankful that tonight she could snuggle up to Grissom instead of being alone in a hotel room.

Changing into her pyjamas Sara noticed Grissom was staring at the ceiling. Silently she slid into bed beside him and instantly snuggled up to him as he placed his arm around her, his eyes still lost on the ceiling.

"Grissom, try and sleep okay?"

"I was just waiting for you to join me" Grissom whispered before turning his gaze to her "Tomorrow I have to go to the lab to see what's happening in Warrick's case, I would like it if you joined me"

"I will do anything for you Gil" with that, Sara gave Grissom a gentle kiss on the lips before letting her eyes close, and the darkness of sleep take her.

**TBC- what you think? please review :) xx**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N okay heres the 2nd chapter i will post the third chapter as soon as possible thanks to those who are reading and reviewing this story** :)

**Thanks to louise and theyHAUNTme for the beta-ing and proof read :)**

_May 26th midday_

_Gil and I didn't sleep much last night. A few times I woke up from a nightmare and saw Gil staring at the ceiling. I asked if he was okay and he said he was, even though we both know he's lying. I was wondering where Hank was this morning and Gil told me he dropped him of with the sitter as soon as he came home, as he wanted to be alone. I know he won't admit it, but last night I saw tears in Gil's eyes. I know he doesn't cry, but sometimes people need to cry to grieve. Warrick's death hit me this morning and Gil was there to comfort me. We are visiting the lab today, and I don't know how the team is going to react, will they hate me for leaving?_

"Honey you ready?" Grissom asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah one minute," Sara replied, stuffing her journal into the bedside drawer before grabbing her jacket and meeting Grissom at the door.

Without another word said, Grissom led Sara to his Tahoe and drove to the lab.

They drove in silence, although Grissom did hold Sara's hand, squeezing it occasionally.

Arriving outside the lab, Grissom turned his engine off and took a few deep breaths before getting out of the car. He walked around the front of the car and helped Sara out of the passenger side.

As the entered the lab, everyone's head turned, first because they saw Sara,but mainly because they spotted Sara and Grissom holding hands as they were walking down the hallways.

"Sara!" Greg yelled from his seat in the break room after seeing her walk past.

"Greg!" Sara stopped and let Greg run up to her and pull her into a tight hug.

They stayed like that for several minutes when Sara noticed her shirt was wet. Pulling Greg's head up so she could look into his eyes, she saw tears.

"Hey, Greggo its okay," Sara smiled, trying to stop her own tears from falling.

"Are you staying?" Greg sniffled. "I mean we don't want to lose you after loosing War..." Greg couldn't finish his sentence before hugging Sara once more and crying.

"Sara I'm going to go talk with Ecklie. How about you stay with Greg in the break room and I will come and find you later?" With Sara's nod, Grissom left the two and headed for his office.

"Come on Greg how about we get out of the halls and we'll talk in the breakroom?" Sara offered.

Greg pulled himself away from Sara and went back to his seat on the breakroom couch. He patted the spot next to him for Sara to sit, which she did.

"I'm sorry for getting your shirt wet, it's just when I saw you everything came out," Greg explained, wiping his eyes.

"It's okay Greg, Gil told me you didn't show any emotion when you found out.To be honest, I was worried about you."

"I'm okay Sara, it was just such a shock. I mean Rick and I are...were buddies, and I'm just going to miss him."

"We all are Greg, I just feel so bad about leaving you all, then coming back for this," Sara said softly, with tears in her eyes.

"Hey everyone will be glad, you're back." Once Greg said that, Nick and Catherine came into the break room. Both Catherine's and Nick's eyes where red and puffy, which showed they didn't have any sleep last night.

"Sara!" Nick smiled a genuine smile at the sight of Sara before Sara stood up and hugged him.

"So nice to see you Sara,"Nick mumbled.

"It's great to see you,"Sara said after breaking the hug.

"Hi Sara," Catherine mumbled before taking a seat on a break room chair, staring into the floor.

"She's taking it much worse then all of us," Nick whispered into Sara ear before sitting next to Greg.

"Catherine are you okay?" Sara asked, taking a seat next to her.

"Yeah I'm fine, everything's just great." Tears started to fall again down Catherine's face. Sara, despite Catherine's sarcasm reached, for a tissue out of her pocket. She knew they would come in handy today, and passed it to Catherine.

"Cath I know, what your feeling..." Sara started before getting cut off.

"You haven't got a clue what I'm feeling. Hell you came here to investigate Warrick so don't say that!" Catherine spat.

"Cath, Sara was like a sister to Warrick, don't take it out on her," Nick spoke up.

Sara couldn't believe that Catherine had brought that up.

"But it's true! She had never liked Warrick from the start," Catherine spat before walking out of the break room, banging into Grissom on the way out.

"Is she okay?" Grissom asked, looking at Sara who looked like she was going to burst into tears.

"Catherine just said a lot of nasty things to Sara about Warrick," Greg answered before turning towards Sara. "She doesn't mean them, it's just she's really taking this bad, and she took it out on you."

"It's okay Greg," Sara mumbled.

"Ok Guys, Ecklie says we are all off work for the next 5 days to grieve also it's essential for us to see a counselor before coming back," Grissom informed the team.

"What! We are not allowed to work Warrick's case?" Nick asked.

"No, I'm afraid not, the undersheriff is working that case"

"That's not fair, Warrick would have wanted us to work his case!" Greg said angrily, tears glistening in his eyes.

"I know Greg, but it's out of my hands now. I recommend you all go home and get some much needed rest."

"He's right guys," Sara said.

"Okay, I order you all to get some rest, and if you ever want to talk, you have my number," Grissom said.

"Okay thanks boss," Nick mumbled before he and Greg left Sara and Grissom alone.

"Are you okay?" Grissom asked, when Sara avoided his gaze.

"Yeah, come on lets go home," she said before offering Grissom her hand and leading him to his car.

_May 26th evening_

_Warrick's case has been given to the undersheriff, Nick and Greg were angry at this. Gil said he tried to say he was fit to take the case, but Ecklie wasn't having any of it. The team seemed happy to see me, except Catherine. She brought up why I came to Vegas in the first place, to investigate Warrick, and how I never liked him. This upset me, as I loved Warrick as a brother, maybe not at first but we grew closer. Gil has been out for 2 hours now and I'm starting to get worried. He said he was going to pick Hank up from the sitter's then take him for a walk. I think he needs to clear his head. I don't know how to comfort him. I wish he'd open up, he will feel better afterwards..._

Sara heard the front door open and ran to see if it was Grissom, leaving the journal on the couch she was sitting on.

"Gil, I started to worry."

"Sorry honey, I needed to clear my head" Grissom replied, taking Hank of his lead. As soon as he did, Hank jumped over Sara and showered her with his sloppy kisses.

"I missed you too baby," Sara said childishly, rubbing the dog's belly.

"Down!" Grissom ordered, noticing Hank was getting too excited. Hearing his owner say this, Hank went off to his bed in the kitchen.

After the dog had left Sara alone, Sara pulled Grissom into a powerful hug, kissing his neck occasionally.

"You want some dinner?" Sara asked, pulling back from the hug after several minutes had passed.

"How about we order take out?" Grissom offered, leaving Sara to go into the kitchen."I'll order."

"Okay Gil," Sara replied, turning on the TV and sitting down on the couch.

Ordering their take out, Grissom went over to join Sara. That's when he spotted her journal.

"What's this?" Grissom asked before Sara quickly took it out of his hands.

"Sorry, it's my journal...when I left Vegas, I decided to write my thoughts and what I did in here. So when you asked about the time I was away, I could show you this and you'll understand..." Sara paused and took a deep breath before continuing, "I'm not ready to show you yet."

"I understand honey, I will only read it when you are ready for me to,"Grissom replied, draping his arm around her shoulder so that he could settle down and get comfy before switching his focus to the TV.

**TBC!- please review :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/n -heres chapter 3, i know its a little short but the next chapter will be longer i promise :) anyways thanks to all those who has read and reviewed this story :)**

**Thanks to louise, and theHAUNTME for the beta-read :)**

**A single death**

**Chapter 3**

May_ 27 Afternoon_

_Grissom asked me if we should invite the team over for a drink tonight. I said yes, as we all need a drink, and we can help each other through the grief by talking about the memories we had with Warrick. Gil phoned Cath and she said she'll come. I'm worried that she'll more, like she did in the break room. I know she is upset, and I don't mind her taking it out on me, if it'll help her, but what she said to me hurt. Gil is slowly talking about the day Warrick died. He told me he found him covered in blood at the strip club. He went quiet after that so I left him alone for a little while. hopefully Gil will talk more instead of keeping it all bottled up inside of him..._

Sara placed her journal on the coffee table in front of her. She had left Grissom to be alone over an hour ago and he still hasn't come to see her. She knew she had to give him space, but she wanted to be the one to comfort him. Making her way to their bedroom, she knocked on the door before opening. Grissom was still sitting the way Sara had left him, at the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.

"Gil," Sara whispered before taking a seat as close as possible next to him.

"Hmm?" Grissom replied, still not moving an inch.

"Gil, it's unhealthy to sit like that for a long length of time. Come on, I'll make some coffee for us."

Sara removed Grissom's hands from his face to take hold of his hand and she led him into the kitchen. Once there, Grissom slumped into the stool against the breakfast bar.

Sara turned the coffee pot on before taking the seat across from him and grasping one of his hands.

"Talk to me Gil. I came back to help you through this."

"I'm sorry honey, it's just he was at no age to die," Grissom murmured, tears again welling up in his eyes.

"I know, but it must have been his day. I don't want to believe it was, but it must have been," Sara replied before making the coffee and placing a cup in front of Grissom.

"That's not a way to die either Sara. He was alone in his car!"

"I know Gil, it isn't a way, but he knows we all loved him," Sara whispered before wiping away the tears that were falling from her eyes.

Grissom just nodded in understanding before his phone went off. Flipping it open, he answered, "Grissom...yeah, sure you can...ok, 6...see you then"

"Who was that?" Sara asked, after Grissom had placed his phone back in his pocket.

"Brass. Nick bumped into him and told him about our plans for tonight, and Brass asked if he could come. I said yes, is that okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine," Sara replied, taking a sip from her own coffee.

"I'll nip out and get some beers. I know the team will want them," Grissom spoke softly after several minutes of silence.

"You want me to come?" Sara asked, hoping he would say yes.

"I won't be long honey. I'll go straight there and back."

"Oh, okay. Erm I'll clean up a little bit then. What time are they coming around?"

"I told them about 6. That gives us time to get something to eat," Grissom replied, whilst getting out of his seat and heading for the door.

"Alright," Sara mumbled before opening the back door for a whining Hank. When she turned back around Grissom had gone. Sara sighed to herself before grabbing her journal and pen off the table and started to write in it.

_May 27 mid afternoon_

_Gil is starting to distant himself from me. He does this sometimes after a hard case, but I have a feeling this is going to last longer than it usually does. I have tried to help him open up, but I guess I can't make him. We have heard nothing about Warrick's case yet. Gil made sure Ecklie would phone him if they found anything, no matter how small. I think he doesn't like being in control on this one, Gil that is..._

Sara placed the book down and wiped a stray tear off her cheek. She called Hank in and started to clean up for the team's arrival.

**TBC- please review, and let us know what you think of this story :)**


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